


io mi senti svegliar dentro a lo core

by NotPersephone



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/M, Florence - Freeform, Missing Scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-21
Updated: 2016-08-21
Packaged: 2018-08-10 04:08:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 857
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7829860
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NotPersephone/pseuds/NotPersephone
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hannibal returns to Florence after the events in Palermo. The reunion scene we needed but never got.</p>
            </blockquote>





	io mi senti svegliar dentro a lo core

The carriage is dark and empty. Its only occupant closes his eyes and breaths deeply focusing on the steady sound of the moving train. Hannibal’s mind is in motion as well, the beauty of the Italian countryside, gradually shifting from night to dawn, lost on him. He reruns the events from Palermo, relocating them between different rooms of his memory palace.

He was not surprised to find Will there but he did not expect he will appear so soon. A remarkable concurrence of events if slightly inconvenient.

Will has forgiven him, at least for the time being. Hannibal has not forgiven Will. Anger and resentment are stirring in his mind.

_“I gave you a rare gift.”_

The sharp blade of betrayal still lodged deep in his heart. And he knows he will come for him, they all will, a retaliation for his own actions. His _impetuous_ actions.  A woman’s voice is echoing in the back of his mind.

_Bedelia._ Her image moves all other thoughts aside. He remembers their last conversation. He showed her the man behind the veil, the real him. Will she be waiting in Florence?

Their marriage might be fake but their commitment is real, for him at the very least. Hannibal ponders her dedication to the life they share. He is suddenly very aware of the rapid beating of a heart, his own, not the bloody one he left behind. The sensation is new, unknown and leaves him more apprehensive than before.

 

**********

 

The train arrives at the Santa Maria Novella station. Hannibal steps onto the platform, his eyes alert and almost crimson in colour. He is certain he was not followed but precaution takes priority as his predatory gaze sweeps the surroundings.

Local people taking their espressos and rushing to catch their trains, swarms of tourists crowding the centre of the station unsure how and where to proceed. He makes his way through the crowd and leaves by the side entrance door.

He crosses the street and heads towards the Piazza. He stops abruptly, struck by a vision of a woman coming from a distance. Perfectly poised, fair hair turned golden in the glistening sun, the city itself seems to be complementing her beauty. _Bedelia has remained in Florence._ There is a stir within Hannibal’s heart, another unfamiliar emotion awaking in his mind.

 

He approaches her and they meet halfway, facing each other, like the worthiest of opponents. If she is surprised to see him she is not revealing it, her meticulous icy façade displaying no weakness.

“How was your trip?” she asks, her professional manner in place. The one he came to know so well from their countless therapy sessions. Hannibal feels his anger returning; hurt that, once again, she chooses to maintain the illusion of professional boundaries which were left broken on another continent in another time.

“I ran into Will Graham” he retorts, determined to provoke a reaction from her.

“Would you like to talk about it?” No breach in her armour. She is ready for battle if he chooses to engage her in one. But he does not. He recalls the bloody valentine and the man who betrayed him. His thumping heart and the woman who was always by his side, now standing in front of him.

“You stayed” he simply says.

 “You came back”, a tiniest of smiles adorns her lips.

Their eyes meet and the world around dissolves.

Her blue gaze entraps his maroon one, peering into his very soul. He has no secrets; he bares it all for her to explore. He notices a gleam in her eyes. It is not a flaw nor a crack but an opening, only for him to see.

Hannibal fights the urge to lean in and kiss her, perfectly aware of her limits when it comes to public displays of affection. He offers his arm which she kindly accepts and they walk down the Piazza. Husband and wife making their way back home.

 

**********

 

Later that night Hannibal’s eyes are fixed on the ceiling of their bedroom, the events of the day still fresh in his mind. His contemplation moves to Bedelia, lying next to him, and he wonders whether she is asleep.

As if sensing his thoughts, a gentle hand moves to rest on his chest.

“Do you have trouble sleeping?” she asks, raising up, her beautiful eyes shining brilliantly even in the dark. Hannibal suddenly remembers Misha’s eyes, wide and bright, as they kept each other company during long winter nights. Yet the woman looking at him is not his sister. She is something else, something more.

“I haven’t, for quite some time” he replies, putting his hand over hers and gently stroking her soft skin with his thumb.

He expects her to withdraw but she doesn’t. Instead she lays her head down next to his. Her warm breath caresses his neck.

Hannibal closes his eyes and smiles. Once again he senses his heartbeat. It seems tumultuous, echoing in his ears. He is certain she must hear it too. Could a shattered one beat this way? No, it could not, Hannibal concurs, realising his heart is not broken anymore.

**Author's Note:**

> The title comes from Dante's "La Vita Nuova":
> 
> "Within my heart I felt the sudden stir  
> of a loving spirit that lay sleeping:  
> and saw Love then, coming from afar (...)"
> 
> It reminded me of them. 
> 
> You can find me at http://bedeliainwonderland.tumblr.com/ where I obsess over the perfection of Bedelia and Hannibal.


End file.
